It's ironic to write about the health benefits of sweating right now since it's February and I live in Michigan. In fact, as I type, we're in the midst of a 2-week cold snap with temps in the single digits before wind chill is even taken into account! We had to move our apples and squash out of what was my "garage fridge" cold storage and into the basement because the garage became a freezer! It's so cold that your sweat would freeze on your forehead, and on Sunday one usher at … [Read more...]
Yes, Pandemic Stress is Real! How to Know If You Have It
Parents, especially moms, have a way of getting right to the heart of the issue. I still remember back in seventh grade when my father told me he was embarrassed that I would consider getting up to sing karaoke with his colleagues' wives at a restaurant. I was crushed. But I took it upon myself to sing better, and now can hold a tune enough to get random compliments at church. Long before the pandemic, my mother tossed out a few zingers about my health. Once about 12 to 18 months … [Read more...]
I Got 3 Wisdom Teeth Removed Without Going Under and NO Prescription Painkillers! Natural Pain Relief for Wisdom Teeth Removal
I had 3 wisdom teeth out. I didn't go under. No light anesthesia. Just a local. (That alone saved $800!) I didn't fill the Norco prescription for pain relief. I had Tylenol around but never used it. I used a lot of frozen peas, reader advice about all the natural, holistic remedies -- and made myself a human experiment... ...which is why I still have one wisdom tooth in my mouth. What are the Risks of Wisdom Tooth Extraction? Before we jump into the story and the natural … [Read more...]
10 Reasons I Drink Bone Broth
Would you drink bone broth? I thought it was a little crazy until one week threw me into desperate measures... In that week, my toddler got pneumonia, my second grader threw up, my preschooler coughed for days on end, my husband coughed...and I would get a tickle of a sore throat now and then. I knew about the health benefits of bone broth, but I always just used it in soup, not a cuppa. RELATED: Natural Pneumonia Remedies. But I knew other people just poured themselves a … [Read more...]
How to Reuse Bones to Make Never Ending Chicken Broth
Making homemade bone broth is so easy, and you’ll save money – LOTS of it – and nourish your family well at the same time. What could be more frugal than getting multiple batches of stock out of the same bones over and over again? Follow these instructions for never-ending chicken broth to get delicious and nutritious broth at the ready, whenever you need it. People are often asking where to start: you know, when they're first coming over to a real food lifestyle and feel overwhelmed … [Read more...]
The Encyclopedia of Chicken Stock – Everything You Need to Know to do it Right!
Don't be a Chicken... ...in the kitchen. Just USE the chicken. Yes, every part of it. Let's face it. Picking up a box of chicken broth at the store is easy. A no-brainer. Until you start to think about added salt, lack of flavor, and especially the fact that it might not even be made with bones - which have all the good nourishment in them! Making homemade chicken stock is nothing to be afraid of! You'll save money - LOTS of it - and nourish your family. (Here's more reasons why I drink … [Read more...]
Finding Safe, Non-Toxic Children’s Pajamas That Won’t Go up in Smoke
Why is it so hard to buy safe, non-toxic pajamas for our children? In a perfect world, maybe all of our clothing could be organic. But when it comes to pajamas, that's far from the only concern. For over 50 years, various types of children's clothing have been required to be flame resistant. Most of the time, that's done through the use of chemical flame retardants. Those chemicals can off-gas into your children's faces all night, or may even seep through their skin. Either way, it's the … [Read more...]
Baby Steps for HEALTHY Emergency Food Storage
Unless your home is completely fireproof, will never flood, and you can be assured that the economy will be perfectly able to support you every day for the rest of your life, you might want to be ready for something weird to happen. It's a surprise when it does – that's why it's called an emergency. Those of us who know how to make things from scratch, buy in bulk to save money, and have the ability to preserve the harvest might not be thinking about what we do as food for emergency … [Read more...]
HEALTHY Long-Term Food Storage Options
Storing food for emergencies is an important job. What is the best method to preserve food? I've already covered how to store grains, long-term storage of meat, protein, and oils, and the longest-lasting vegetables. Today, we'll cover preserving food naturally. I'm not ready to spend hours per month checking my food stores, rotating supplies, and making sure I'm ready for anything. I just want to feel a little more ready for something. My goal in the preparedness series is to … [Read more...]
Storing Grains and Storing Flour Long Term
Storing flour long term is an important part of emergency preparedness. Storage for grains can last for years if you do it correctly. Learn how to store flour and other grains. In The Long Winter, a book in the Little House series by Laura Ingalls Wilder, the family ends up in dire straits, trapped in a tiny new town with very few food stores, and no trains until spring. There's a terrible blizzard about every 2-3 days that lasts 3 days, and no one can go anywhere to get food. They … [Read more...]
Butternut Squash Gluten-Free Biscuit Recipe (Dairy-Free and Vegan Option)
Squash are never a uniform size, are they? Funny looking vegetables already, they can range from 1 to 5 pounds. That means when I cook a squash and puree it, I never know quite how many cups I will get. I'm often making yummy recipes in the fall like these pancakes in a quadruple batch (4 cups pureed squash), these pumpkin muffins in a double batch (up to 3 cups pureed squash), and the butternut spice bars found in the Healthy Lunchbox ebook and our snacks thematic skill lab over at Kids … [Read more...]
HEALTHY Food Stockpile Options: The Best Produce to Stockpile
Having a healthy food stockpile list is essential to any household - but what's a real foodie to do? What are the best fruits and vegetables to stockpile when you don't want preservatives or processed foods? Here is the best food to store up from the produce section: The best food to stockpile is what your family already eats! The best food to stockpile is primarily getting ahead on what your family regularly consumes. In addition to fruits and vegetables, this works really … [Read more...]
Could Masks be Helpful AND Harmful to our Kids?
I'm still sad every single time I see a child wearing a mask. My kids are wearing masks daily for school in person, but this is not the way we were created to be. I tell my kids often: This is temporary. It will end. We're only doing this for a little while to respect others. I don't want masking to be normalized. I don't want people to get used to it, to be boiled like a frog by those in power who miiiiiiight just be trying to figure out exactly how much control they … [Read more...]
Storing Protein, Meats, Beans, Nuts & Oils Long Term
What is the best long term storage food? Storing protein in case of emergency is an important part of your preparedness plan. We'll cover meat storage, how to store meat in the freezer, and best beans for long-term storage. Plus, we'll touch on storing oils and fats. Many of the preparedness food storage solutions for meat are a far cry from a hamburger or a whole chicken simmering gently on the stovetop. They're more likely to have no meat involved or be packed with additives … [Read more...]
Christmas Gifts for the Natural Foodie & Family
What are the best kitchen gifts for Christmas? I've tested all of these foodie gifts for Christmas that will please any cook you love. I hate shopping. If I need new jeans, I'll put it off for as long as I can. Even a shopping trip without children, which should be pure, untouchable bliss, quickly turns sour after a few rejected piles in the fitting room. Now tell me I have a half hour to kill wandering around a health food store, and I'll gladly read ingredients and ogle … [Read more...]
Should You Be Cooking With Olive Oil?
Is cooking with olive oil harmful to your health? I used to think so but updated research has shed new light on the topic. Keep reading to see what changed my mind. Olive oil -- the food that brings us all together. Whether you're keto, paleo, vegan, vegetarian, eat a low-fat/high carb diet, or low carb/high-fat diet, it seems everyone agrees that olive oil has impressive health-promoting properties and should be consumed regularly, especially in cold applications like salad … [Read more...]
How to Save Money on Grass-fed Meat Shipped to Your Door {Butcher Box REVIEW 2021 & More}
Remember back in March when you could find ZERO ground beef in any stores? It was pretty clear that people were stocking up for the taco/spaghetti diet! :) And...I was uncharacteristically completely out of grass-fed ground beef! I had a touch of food insecurity. I felt so much more relieved (and taco-secure) once I made my Butcher Box order, which I usually do every 3 months to supplement what I can't find at our favorite local farm. Grass-Fed, Pastured, Sustainable … [Read more...]
Organize Your Kitchen Efficiently: Kitchen Organization Hacks You’ll Want to Start Today!
These are the best organization tips for the kitchen I've collected over the years to reorganize a kitchen efficiently. Streamline it with kitchen zones, counter organization, and moving unneeded items out so you can have an efficient kitchen. Today we're going to take a critical look at your kitchen and reorganize for efficiency. Trust me, you will feel so much better. Reorganize Kitchen Efficiently When we moved over a decade ago, I took the most time planning and unpacking the … [Read more...]
Make-Ahead Breakfast: Cherry-Almond Soaked Baked Oatmeal Recipe
I've noticed it takes approximately once for kids to assume something is a tradition. Do anything once, especially near a holiday, and suddenly that is "the way we do it." The kids will expect it every time. Thank goodness, I've been using a simple, make-ahead breakfast for every Christmas and Easter for years. So when my kids think of a holiday with fun gifts showing up in the morning and a really special mass, they will also think of baked oatmeal in many flavors. It's absolutely our … [Read more...]
5 Face Mask Risks You Can Control and the Solutions
Knowledge is everything. The way I wear a mask and what it causes me to do with my nose, my mouth, and my fingers is a complete 180-degree reversal from what masks cause others to do habitually. I believe it's because my brain is inundated with knowledge: I understand the harms of mouth breathing and the risks touching my face, and I appreciate the glorious benefits of the hairs in my nose. And if you think education won't work for kids, think again, at least if we're talking a little … [Read more...]
- 1
- 2
- 3
- …
- 61
- Next Page »